Longtime Kailua baseball coach has a certain F-word to describe Zayne Hookala.

"Freak," Ishigo said of the junior left-handed pitcher/outfielder.

Hookala, a 6-foot, 175-pound third-year starter for the Surfriders, possesses a rare set of skills that makes him standout from most of the other ball players Ishigo has coached over his 25-plus years as head coach at his alma mater.

"If you haven't seen (Hookala) play, he's freak-ish. You don't see that kind of arm – (but) he's always had it – with that kind of speed and he has power for not looking big; He's always had those skills," Ishigo said.

There is nary a day that one won't find Hookala penciled into Ishigo's lineup card. He is one of four arms that the Surfriders are heavily relying upon this spring. Hookala's fastball – one of four pitches in his repertoire – can reach up to 97 miles per hour, according to Ishigo. He's also consistently around the zone with his other three pitches: a curveball, slider and change-up.

"He throws them all with command so I don't mind throwing ‘em in any count," Ishigo noted. "We're still in preseason form, too, so I know he's going to be throwing harder later in the year – his arm is freakish, it's crazy – but right now he's sitting at about 85 (mph)."

Hookala has pitched in big games before; He got the ball to start the Surfriders' state quarterfinal game against Saint Louis last May. 

"When he was a freshman he was one of our main guys on the mound and his sophomore year he pitched in that state game, that Saint Louis game, so in big games we know we can depend on him to show up," Ishigo said. 

When Hookala isn't toeing the rubber, he can be found in the outfield. A year ago he patrolled centerfield, but has shifted over to right field with sophomore Kaalekahi Kuhaulua taking over his former spot.

And then there's his bat. Hookala has been a consistent presence in the two-hole in each of his three varsity seasons. Ishigo said there were thoughts of moving Hookala up or down in the card, but likes having his skillset behind leadoff batter Rayvin Pagan and ahead of Kuhaulua, the No. 3 batter in the lineup.

"He brings speed, power, the ability to get on base and he has a good eye. He can hit and run, he can do stuff with the bat because she's got good bat control, so yeah, we can do anything with him – we can bunt with him, too," Ishigo detailed.

Hookala put his tools on display in Kailua's OIA East opener against Moanalua last Wednesday. Hookala batted 2 for 4 with two runs batted in; He also stole a base and scored a run in the 17-7 win over Na Menehune that was called after six innings due to the mercy rule.

In Saturday's all-windward Oahu showdown against Castle, Hookala got the start and was masterful in his first pitching appearance of the year. He threw 46 of his 65 total pitches for strikes and tallied nine strikeouts to lead the Surfriders to a 5-0 win.

Hookala allowed just one hit, did not walk a batter and had just one three-ball count against a batter. He retired the first 12 batters he faced and alllowed only one base runner to reach third. Six of his nine strikeouts were swinging. Hookala retired the six in each of the first four innings before he beaned the leadoff batter in the top of the fifth and allowed Castle's lone hit off of him on a two-out single to left field. 

Ishigo noted that his pitchers are still building up their endurance and that Hookala was on a 60-pitch count Saturday.

"That's totally what I expected, but actually I thought Castle made contact more than they should have. We had to throw (different) pitches, but I think he could have blew fastballs by them all day," Ishigo said.

Hookala helped his own cause at the plate with a 2-for-3 day. He also drew a walk and stole a base in the win. On the season Hookala is batting .500.

Despite his natural talents, Hookala isn't one to rest on his laurels, Ishigo pointed out.

"He works hard, he goes at everything at 100 percent – even in the offseason – there's no days off for him. He likes to go to the beach, but nothing else really; He's pretty much just baseball and if he's not on the field, he's in the weight room," Ishigo said.

Hookala isn't a captain for the Surfriders this season, but to be sure, he is counted upon to provide leadership for the defending Oahu Interscholastic Association champions.

"What's good about him is he don't talk. He doesn't boast about himself, he doesn't talk to the other team, he just goes out and plays and he's not scared of nothing. You can see that he's intense and he's focused and driven to compete, but he doesn't talk it. He won't back down from anything," Ishigo described.

Hookala, as well as Kuhaulua, have given verbal commitments to the University of Hawaii.

Ishigo, a former ‘Bows second baseman under legendary coach Les Murakami, is optimistic about Hookala's future with the hometown team.

"Hopefully he'll be able to play there two ways. Not much people have done it there, but hopefully he could do it – he has the tools," Ishigo said.

Hookala and the Surfriders (3-0) posted a 5-1 win over Kaiser Wednesday and will look to stay undefeated when they take on Roosevelt (2-1) in a televised game Saturday, 6 p.m. at Hans L'Orange Park.

BASEBALL 

Z. Alo-Rosa, Kahuku — Struck out five batters, walked none and allowed two hits in five scoreless innings pitched in a win over Waialua 

Jayson Au Hoy, Pearl City — Batted 2 for 3 with a double and three RBI in a loss to Aiea 

Case Cannon, Kaiser — Batted 2 for 4 with two home runs, three RBI and three runs scored in a win over Castle 

Matthew Chung, Roosevelt — Struck out four batters, walked one and allowed four hits in a five-inning shutout of Kalani 

Kai Hirayama, Mililani — Struck out 12 batters, walked one and allowed two hits in a complete-game shutout of Leilehua 

Justin Kubojiri, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Batted 4 for 4 with an RBI, two stolen bases and three runs scored in a win over Konawaena 

Kaalekahi Kuhaulua, Kailua — Batted 3 for 4 with a triple, double, one walk, four RBI and two runs scored in a win over Moanalua 

Malosi Mataafa-Alferos, Mililani — Batted 2 for 4 with a home run, four RBI and a stolen base in a win over Aiea 

Bryson Momotomi, Roosevelt — Batted 2 for 3 with a triple, three RBI and a run scored in a win over Kalani 

Koa Nakagawa, Konawaena — Struck out four batters, walked none and allowed three hits in five shutout innings in a win over Kealakehe 

Larken Nakasone, Roosevelt — Batted 3 for 3 with an RBI in a loss to Moanalua 

Jayden Pacariem, Campbell — Batted 3 for 4 with a double, one walk, two RBI and two runs scored in a win over Waipahu 

Keegan Pacheco, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Batted 3 for 3 with a triple, double, four RBI and three runs scored in a win over Keaau 

Chaseten Rice, Waianae — Allowed one run on four hits with eight strikeouts and two walks in a complete-game win over Kalaheo 

Tanner Tammarine, Leilehua — Struck out seven batters, walked two and allowed three hits in a complete-game shutout of Waipahu 

Benjamin Taylor, Kalaheo — Batted 3 for 3 with an RBI and a stolen base in a loss to Waianae 

Bryson Toner, Kaiser — Allowed two runs on one hit with eight strikeouts and no walks in a five-inning win over Castle 

Jonah Yacap, Campbell — Batted 2 for 3 with a double, two walks, two RBI and two runs scored in a win over Waipahu 

Dennison Zakahi, Aiea — Batted 3 for 3 with a double, walk RBI and three runs scored in a win over Pearl City 

BOYS VOLLEYBALL

Brenden Emry, Kekaulike — Had 24 set assists, seven digs, one kill and an ace in a four-set loss to Baldwin 

Andrew Guzman, Maui — Had 24 set assists, one block assist and an ace in a three-set win over Kekaulike and had 25 set assists, four block assists and two aces in a three-set win over Kamehameha-Maui 

Jheyden Haili, Pahoa — Had 24 set assists, 14 digs, six kills, three block assists and one ace in a four-set loss to Kamehameha-Hawaii 

Hua Haramoto, Kekaulike — Had 18 digs, nine kills, five set assists and three aces in a four-set loss to Baldwin 

Analu Kaholokai-Yockman, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Had 38 set assists, six digs, three aces, one kill, one solo block and a block assist in a four-set win over Pahoa 

Piikoa Kamoku, Kamehameha-Maui — Had 14 kills in a three-set win over Lahainaluna 

Ty Kikuchi, Punahou — Had 30 set assists, four kills and two aces in a four-set win over Hawaii Baptist 

Cameron Porter, Punahou — Had 20 kills, three block assists, two solo blocks, two set assists and two aces in a four-set win over Hawaii Baptist 

Pau Spencer, Kamehameha-Maui — Had 14 digs, three kills and three aces in a three-set win over Lahainaluna and had 19 set assists, six digs, three kills and two aces in a three-set loss to Maui 

Manu Takeshita, Kekaulike — Had 13 digs in a three-set loss to Maui and had 17 digs and one ace in a four-set loss to Baldwin 

Afatia Thompson, Punahou — Had 14 kills, two block assists and one ace in a four-set win over Hawaii Baptist 

Kai Toyofuku, Hawaii Baptist — Had 30 set assists, two aces and one block assist in a four-set loss to Punahou 

 

Synnove Robinson is picking up her junior season where she left off her sophomore campaign – by finding the back of the net.

Robinson, a junior on the Punahou girls' water polo team, has been prolific to say the least in each of her two-plus years with the Buffanblu.

The 5-foot-8 attacker has netted an astounding 99 goals in her prep career, including 11 in Punahou's first two matches of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu season last week.

"We try to really implement a lot of fast breaks, so that's one of her positions, to really lead our counter-attack. Her first two years she was our leading scorer, so we have big expectations of her and we rely on her a lot for scoring goals," Buffanblu coach Ken Smith said of Robinson, a two-time All-ILH First Team selection.

As a freshman two years ago Robinson netted 33 goals, second most on the team, and scored in all but one of her team's 16 matches that year. Last year she tallied a team-best 45 goals on the year.

Smith, who has served as Punahou's head coach since 1973, describes Robinson as a "grinder."

"She works really hard and she just goes for it all the time. No matter what we're doing, she just goes for it, whether it's on offense or defense, and she just really has that eye for scoring and looks for every opportunity she can to score," Smith said.

Robinson's versatility has served the Buffanblu well over the years. Smith noted that Robinson can "just about every position."

"She's not quite big enough to play a big defender – in basketball it would be a center – but all the other positions. She can defend really well and her conditioning is phenomenal. Any swim set we do, it's not too hard for her. There's no swim set that she doesn't go all out on, so she's a very talented swimmer and she knows how to train," Smith added.

Outside of water polo, Robinson ran varsity cross country as both a freshman and sophomore. As a freshman she finished 17^th in the state championship meet and followed that up with a 27^th-place finish the next year. Punahou won the team state title both years.

Robinson is also a member of the school's swim team and is a standout in both the 200- and 500-yard freestyle events. She placed sixth and fifth, respectively, at the state championship meet her sophomore year and this year, improved upon those marks to place third and fourth, respectively. Again, the Buffanblu won the team state crown both years.

"She trains basically twelve months out of the year," said Smith, who lauded the junior's ability to juggle a multitude of sports with a vigorous academic load. He noted that Robinson is currently visiting Harvard University and will miss Punahou's ILH match against Iolani Tuesday night.

"I think she doesn't have a lot of distractions. She puts her mind to what she wants to do, what she wants to accomplish and she's great at time management. She gets everything done. She's a really, really great student and I think she's a great example that you can do it all if you manage your time," Smith said.

Robinson isn't the most vocal of players, but Smith said her work ethic has proven to be infectious amongst her teammates.

"She's playing hard all the time and I think that makes her teammates play harder. I think she makes people around her play better just because of her style and her intensity and her work ethic," Smith said.

Smith can still recall the first time he saw Robinson play back in her middle school days.

"I knew she would be special pretty much when I saw her play in seventh grade. I was just kind of waiting for her to get up to ninth grade. I have two other freshmen that started that year and they're all juniors now. We were a real young group then, but they're all strong and I would say Synnove has emerged a little bit more because she travels a lot during the summer," Smith said.

Robinson, a member of the Oahu Water Polo Club, was named to USA Water Polo's Women's Cadet National Team in 2023 and last year represented the country as part of the Youth Futures International Team that trained and competed in Athens, Greece.

"I think her inspiration comes from just this deep belief that she wants to be the best she's capable of becoming. When she trains, she trains as hard as she can to become as best as she can. She definitely wants to play at the highest level she's capable of playing at. It's that saying, you get out of it what you put into it and she puts a lot of time into it and a lot of thought into it and she's just hungry, hungry to score goals and willing to do whatever it takes," Smith said.

Over the years, Smith does not recall a single instance of Robinson lamenting a task or displaying poor body language.

"I've never heard her complain about anything we do in practice. She just wants more. If we worked out twice a day, every day she would be willing to do that and I think she's at this point because of her work ethic," Smith said.

Although Punahou has laid claim to 15 of the 19 state championships since the tournament's inception in 2004, Robinson has yet to capture the top prize. The Buffanblu have fallen victim to Kamehameha in each of the past two state finals.

Reclaiming that spot on the top of the proverbial mountain has been a source of motivation for Robinson and her teammates. 

"I think they're very motivated. Overall this group has worked as hard as any group I've ever coached. They're highly motivated and I've got four, five girls like her that just grind it out every practice, never complain – the harder the better – they're really into working super hard, maybe because we came close the last two years, so that's a great motivator for them," Smith said. 

Punahou (3-0) was without Robinson for its 13-2 win over Iolani (0-3) Tuesday night. The Buffanblu return to the pool Saturday, when they take on Mid-Pacific (0-2) at UH-Manoa's Duke Kahanamoku Aquatic Complex at 2 p.m.

GIRLS WATER POLO

Ava Carlson, Kamehameha — Scored four goals in a win over Iolani and scored five goals in a win over Mid-Pacific 

Ellie Dallas, Moanalua — Scored five goals in a loss to Kahuku 

Karly Dias, Le Jardin II — Scored seven goals in a loss to Punahou II 

Kiana Feeney, Kalaheo — Scored 11 goals in a win over Kailua 

Maile Judd, Kaiser — Scored four goals in a win over Mililani 

Isabella Lee, Punahou II — Scored four goals in a win over Mid-Pacific II 

Kahea Miskeila, Iolani II — Scored four goals in a win over Kamehameha II 

Eliana Shiffner, Kaiser — Scored four goals in a win over Mililani

Laikuakamahina Wong, Kamehameha — Scored four goals in a win over Iolani and scored four goals in a win over Mid-Pacific 

SOFTBALL

Taylor Adriano, Mililani — Struck out seven and walked none in a four-inning no-hitter against Nanakuli 

Hinano Bautista, Mililani — Batted 3 for 4 with two home runs, a double, one walk, four RBI and two runs scored and pitched a complete game in a win over Campbell

Haley Ching, Kalani — Batted 3 for 4 with a home run, triple and five RBI in a win over Kaimuki 

Sam Conde, Punahou II — Batted 3 for 3 with a triple, four RBI and two runs scored in a win over Sacred Hearts 

Kasi Cruz, Maryknoll — Allowed two earned runs on four hits with nine strikeouts and three walks in a complete-game win over Kamehameha

Ciara Fortuno, Leilehua — Batted 3 for 3 with two doubles, an RBI and a run scored in a win over Kapolei 

Lia Hamamura, Kaiser — Batted 2 for 4 with three RBI in a win over Kalani 

Audrey Hoffman, Radford — Batted 3 for 3 with a home run, two doubles, three RBI and three runs scored in a win over Farrington 

Hunter Jackson, Moanalua — Homered twice and drove in six runs in a win over Kaimuki 

Keala Kahoohalahala-Watanabe, Baldwin — Batted 2 for 2 with a home run, double, one walk, four RBI, a stolen base and three runs scored in a win over Kamehameha-Maui 

Breann Leong, Leilehua — Allowed one run on four hits with nine strikeouts and one walk in a complete game and batted 2 for 3 with two home runs, two walks, three RBI, one stolen base and three runs scored in a win over Nanakuli 

Briana Maio-Silva, Baldwin — Batted 3 for 4 with three doubles, one walk, two RBI and three runs scored in a win over Kekaulike 

Kandi Malama-Ahlo, Kapolei — Batted 2 for 4 with two doubles and three RBI and struck out eight batters in a five-inning three-hit shutout win over Waianae 

Pollyanna Melekiola, Lahainaluna — Batted 2 for 3 with a home run, double, four RBI and three runs scored in a win over Kamehameha-Maui and batted 2 for 3 with two doubles, two RBI and two runs scored in a loss to Maui 

Lana Nakayama, Mililani — Batted 3 for 3 with a triple, double, three RBI and two runs scored in a win over Nanakuli 

Bailey Nagasako, Baldwin — Batted 4 for 4 with three doubles and three RBI in a win over Kekaulike 

Casey Ann Ross, Lahainaluna — Batted 3 for 4 with a home run, doubles, four RBI and three runs scored and allowed three earned runs on three hits with five strikeouts and four walks in a five-inning win over Kamehameha-Maui 

Hunter Salausa-Galletes, Iolani — Batted 2 for 4 with a home run, one walk, four RBI and a stolen base in a win over Mid-Pacific 

Palehua Silva, Maryknoll — Batted 3 for 4 with two RBI in a win over Kamehameha 

Alia Sinto-Dela Cruz, Waianae — Batted 4 for 4 with three home runs, a double, six RBI and four runs scored in a win over Kalaheo 

Taja Souza, Aiea — Allowed one earned run on five hits with eight strikeouts and one walk in six innings pitched and batted 2 for 4 with a triple, two RBI, two stolen bases and a run scored in a win over Kailua 

Saige Telles, Kealakehe — Batted 4 for 5 with four RBI and two runs scored in a win over Konawaena 

Freeda Tosie, Kealakehe — Batted 4 for 4 with a double, one walk, three RBI, two stolen bases and three runs scored in a win over Konawaena 

Kulani Welch-Hutchins, Kahuku — Allowed one earned run on eight hits with 10 strikeouts and two walks and pitched a complete game and batted 2 for 4 with a double in a win over Waipahu 

Makenzie Yokoyama, Kaiser — Allowed two earned runs on one hit with nine strikeouts and four walks in a complete game and tripled and scored a run in a win over Kalani 

Mauliola Zuttermeister, PAC-5 — Batted 3 for 4 with a home run, double and three RBI in a loss to Kamehameha II 

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